Love Is Blind
by ConfusedColumbia26220
Summary: That one visit to Nathan's home changed more than Blind Mag had hoped for. Five treading on six couples.
1. Chapter 1

At the fair she had been reintroduced via Rotti to the godchild she had been told had died. When she had taken the risk to visit the once familiar home of her old friend, she would have never predicted the chain of events that followed. She had originally planned to quit her slaving job as the Voice of GeneCo, which she knew would ultimately lead to her own demise and she had made her peace with the fact. She had wished to simply see Shilo, her goddaughter, for the first time, really, to fulfill her promise to her late friend that she would be present in her life. She would give some advice and leave. She didn't want to get too attached when she knew her time would be limited.

In actuality, the encounter hadn't turned out quite the way she had planned. She did get to see Shilo and offer her advice but the shift came when Nathan had returned home. It had been a good seventeen years since she'd last seen him, and aside from looking a bit older he was very much the same Nate she knew. She was almost too stunned to speak. She thought she had buried her feelings for him years ago, but they returned to her with fleeting speed. Moments of silence as they stared into each other's eyes passed until Mag mustered up, "Hi Nathan." She was careful not to give any emotion away.

Nathan then felt it was safe to speak, since the silence had been broken. "Mag. How did you get in here?" his voice was guarded. He hadn't been expecting to find her there.

Avoiding his question, Mag stated, "Nathan, I promised your late wife I'd be present in Shilo's life." She did her best to keep the hurt from her voice. Why had he lied to her - kept her away?

Before Nathan could think of a response his daughter climbed down the stairs. "Dad?" It was tentative, she didn't want her father to be angry with her. "Why didn't you tell me she is my godmother?" She walked to stand next to Mag, facing her father.

If Nathan had to explain, he would rather do it one at a time, but since that scenario was unlikely, everything needed to be revealed in one go. He had kept secrets from them both, and each knew something the other didn't. He prayed Marni would assist him through the difficult task. He answered Shilo's question first. "Protection." Being confronted by the both of them made him regret that decision. Marni wouldn't have wanted their lives to be seperate. "Mag, I can only imagine what things are running through your head right now. You must think of me as an awful person for keeping Shilo from you. It seemed like it had been out of necessity at the time. Rotti Largo is very intimidating."

Mag let out a clipped laugh at his last statement. She knew that fact far too well.

Nathan continued. "Shi, when your mother died I was blamed for it. Rotti was willing to keep me out of jail for a price - work for him as a Repo Man."

Shilo gasped and Mag insticntively wrapped her arms around her as a gesture of comfort. Neither one could imagine the man standing before them accomplishing the deeds of a Repo Man.

"You've lied to me my whole life!" The hurt was evident in Shilo's voice as she clung to Mag.

Nathan couldn't blame her for being upset. "I wanted to keep you safe from Rotti. I could never lose you, Shi. It would ruin me."

Mag's heart went out to him although she had yet to hear an explanation. It was obvious he cared about Shilo and that whatever he'd done had been out of love.

"Mag, I know how tightly Rotti has bound you to him. I couldn't risk letting you into Shilo's life when if Rotti ever said the word he could snatch you permanently back out of it. It would be bad for the both of us. I felt I had to sever the ties before my family could be torn apart by Rotti for a second time." If Shilo had stayed in bed or if Mag had come any earlier he probably would not have been telling them everything.

Mag was touched by the notion that Nathan considered her family. It didn't make her returning affections from the past fade, however. In fact it did quite the contrary. She felt Shilo slip out of her grip.

"That doesn't answer everything. Dad, you told me mother had died from a blood disease." Shilo hated the feeling of knowing she had been deceived numerous times by her own father.

Mag was shocked to hear that. "Nate, please say you didn't." She couldn't believe he could have lied about that. Then again, he'd lied to her about Shilo's existance, so it shouldn't have surprised her.

Shilo knew then that she had been lied to about her mother's death as well, and she couldn't handle that. She fled up the stairs and to her room.

When Nathan looked at Mag he looked utterly lost and his eyes almost pleaded her help.

"Cold as it may sound, you've dug yourself into quite the mess, Nate." Mag stated.

"Can you blame me for not wanting my daughter to know that I killed her mother?" Nathan snapped. He was angry at himself for making a bad situation worse.

"It was an accident. She would understand that." Mag had offered soothing words, hoping he didn't hear the way her voice cracked as she'd said it.

Nathan took his glasses off and massaged his forehead. "No, she wouldn't."

"How do you know?"

He didn't want to tell her how. "I just know."

"How?" Mag demanded. She had decided to take the forceful approach since the gentle one wasn't coaxing a response from him.

As the answer slipped from his lips, Nathan felt his heart sink in guilt. "I drugged her blood. Only to give her an illness that would keep her safe from the outside world. You of all people must know my intentions were good."

Mag nodded understandingly.

"I just don't think Shi's ready to know that. She'd hate me if she knew."

Mag only dared to offer words of reassurance, afraid of what might happen if she tried any other way. "She already knows you've been dishonest with her, Nate. You're going to need to tell her something sometime, and I don't think it would be wise to replace a lie with a lie."

The subject wasn't going anywhere Nathan liked, so he changed it. "So, what are you doing here, Mag?" He returned his glasses to his face.

Mag lowered her eyes to the floor. "To see Shilo before signing my death warrant. I was going to quit GeneCo."

"No, Mag -"

"I said 'was'. My plans have changed." She looked back at him. She was glad for him to care as much to protest her quitting, knowing what it would mean. "I want to help you, Nathan."

"With what?"

"With what I should have been helping you with for the past seventeen years." Mag thought he was going to protest but what came from his mouth held a different tune.

"Are you sure you won't get in trouble?" As he'd asked he'd reached out and touched her arm.

A small smile graced Mag's lips. "I'll risk it."

Nathan hoped Marni wouldn't mind that he'd thought Mag looked beautiful just then. He gently took her hand and looked into her eyes to make his request. "Could you talk to Shilo for me?"

"And say what?"

"Just go up there. It will come easily to you. She's exactly like Marni."

Mag pulled her hand back. "Thank you, Nate." She chastely kissed him on the cheek before turning to the stairs. She began walking up them.

Shilo's room had been easy enough to find. Mag knocked on the door.

"Go away!" Mag could hear Shilo was crying. It pulled at her heart.

"Shilo, it's Mag. Can I come in?"

In a couple seconds, Shilo was opening her bedroom door. "You're still here!" she exclaimed. "I thought Dad was going to make you leave." She unshyly tackled her in a hug, crying into her.

"Ssh, Shilo. I'm here now." Mag rubbed her back gently.

"I feel as if he's been lying to me my whole life!"

Mag wasn't sure she could deny the statement. "Even if he has, honey, it hasn't changed how much he loves you." That she was sure of.

Shilo cried into her harder. Her shaking was becoming uncontrollable. She had put her body under too much stress. Her holo-communicator started beeping. 'Medicate immediately. Medicate immediately.' The mechanical voice within droned. She soon lost consciousness.

Mag let her lay on the floor as she headed for the stairs. "Nathan!" she called. Her voice held the appropriate urgency.

Nathan automatically felt worry for his daughter. He half-jogged and met her at the halfway point on the stairs. "What is it?"

"I think she's overworked herself." Mag answered as she headed back up the stairs with Nathan hot on her tail. "Her holo-communicator is screaming to medicate immediately."

Nathan could hear the shakiness in Mag's voice. He stopped her before she walked back into Shilo's room. He'd touched her shoulder and she'd turned to face him. "She'll be alright." When Mag hugged him he knew it was out of relief. He patted her back stiffly twice before pushing past her.

Kneeling down, he picked Shilo up. Her holo-communicator was still telling him that she needed to be medicated immediately. He carried her to her bed and hooked her up to the machiene. He looked over his shoulder at Mag who still looked overly worried. He wished there was something he could do to reassure her. Since he could think of nothing, he asked her a favor. "Could you go down to the kitchen and bring a glass of water?"

Mag nodded and turned on her heel, leaving the room to do the deed.

Nathan grabbed the glass bottle of medicine stones from its usual place on Shilo's nightstand. He kissed her forehead. "You'll be okay soon," he promised. He wiped the tears away that had been drying to her face. He couldn't help but think that hiding things from her would possibly be hurting her more than helping her.

It didn't take Mag long to return with the water. She handed the glass to Nathan. He took it and dropped one stone in the water. It began to fizz, as usual. He propped Shilo's head up with one hand and carefully placed the glass between her lips. He poured in just enough medicated water to get the medication into her system without worrying about choking her. He sat the glass on the nightstand once her holo-communicator ceased to talk.

"She was surprised I was still here." Mag informed. She hovered next to Nathan to watch Shilo. "She thought you were going to make me leave. I am welcomed her now, aren't I?" Something out Shilo's window caught her attention. It was something on the large television screen. Disregarding her previous question she asked, "Can I open this?" While walking up to the window. She couldn't hear what was being said.

"Not too wide."

Mag opened it just a crack. It was a breaking news story. It was about whether or not the GeneCo empire would fall when the founder, who was terminally ill, passed on.

Mag gasped.

"What is it?" Nathan asked seeming worried as he moved to join her.

"Good news." Mag turned to face him, shutting the window. "Apparantly Rotti is terminally ill."

Nathan had never been so happy about an illness. In his glee, he unthinkingly grabbed Mag and gave her a celebratory kiss - on the lips.

Mag could no longer hold herself back. She kissed back with passion. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close. She never wanted to stop, never wanted to let go. Nathan pulled away, though, and she thought he was going to be angry.

Letting out his breath awkwardly, he let go of her shoulders. Mag was quick to bring her arms to her sides as well. He had just essentially kissed his best friend. _I'm sorry, Marni_. He thought.

Shilo had come to consciousness in time to see her father kiss the woman who had been her idol for years. "Does this mean you're staying?" she asked Mag from her bed. The two adults jumped at her voice and turned to face her.

"I'm not sure," Mag answered. If anything she thought it meant she'd be going. She was relieved to see Shilo was fine. She went over and sat next to her on the bed. "Do you feel okay now?"

"I feel fine." Shilo made a face at what she was going to say next. "This may seem a little silly, but could I have your autograph?"

Mag smiled at the request. "Of course you can, honey." Sure enough, when she looked at the wall at the head of Shilo's bed, she saw a poster of herself.

After hearing Shilo's request, Nathan decided to make himself useful. "I'll get a sharpie." Anything he could do to make up to his daughter. He left the room in search of a sharpie.

Mag gently stroked Shilo's hair. "It's just like your mother's."

"It's a wig," Shilo informed. "Daddy made it."

"Well then, it was probably intentional." She quirked a corner of her mouth up. "He loved your mother very much."

"Did he love you at a time as well?" Shilo was only trying to find the reasoning behind the kiss she'd witnessed them share.

Mag sighed. "There was a brief time before he met your mother that we shared a connection, but I'm not sure if it was love." She wasn't sure on his end, anyway.

Shilo nodded in what appeared to be either agreement or understanding. She sat up. "What happened earlier? I wasn't outside, why did I black out?"

"I think you just overworked your body is all. Had me worried though."

"You were worried about me?" Shilo seemed in awe.

"Yeah, I was. I care about you, Shilo."

Shilo hugged her. "I'd better not be dreaming," she muttered.

Mag laughed. "You're not." She hugged her back. The girl gave strong hugs, very much like Marni had. "Mm. You give hugs like your mother."

Nathan returned with the sharpire. He was enlightened by the bonding scene. He wondered if it was okay to reopen old feelings with Mag now that Marni was gone. He didn't want to betray her in any way. He handed the sharpie to Mag.

Mag stretched her arm out to sign Shilo's poster and handed the sharpie back to Nathan. "Thank you."

"Dad?"

"Yes, Shi?" Nathan was glad he and Shilo were on speaking terms again.

"Are you ever going to remarry?"

"I don't know, Shi. I hadn't thought about it much."

"Well, if you do, I want it to be Mag."

The two adults in question laughed. "We'll see about that." Mag stated. Nathan was glad to have been saved from responding. Mag's eyes widened as she remembered she had a performance that night. "I'm sorry, I need to go. I have a performance tonight."

"Dad, can we go?"

"I don't know, Shi." He sounded like he didn't think it was a great idea.

"Please?" Her voice was so hopeful as she asked that Nathan caved.

"Alright."

"Thank you, Dad!" Shilo excitedly threw her arms around him in a hug. She hugged him tightly.

"What time is the concert?" Nathan asked Mag, glad to have his daughter back.

"Nine-thirty tonight. I have to go." She quickly hugged Shilo. "See you later." She hurried out of the house to her driver that she'd forgotten had still been waiting on her. As she climbed into the car, she felt a happiness in her heart that she hadn't felt since Marni had been alive. It looked like she was going to have her family back as well as her private life. It would be easier to put up with whatever Rotti made her do, knowing it wouldn't last for much longer.

At the house, Nathan ans Shilo got ready. It would be the first time Nathan had taken his daughter out anywhere. Of course, Nathan kept going into overdrive about how he didn't want her to have another fainting spell at the theater and that if she did he wouldn't let her go out again. He wasn't sure how serious he'd been about that, but there was no need for Shilo to know.

Shilo brushed it off with, "Yeah, yeah."s and "I know, Dad"s. She was just excited to be getting out of the house for once with permission, rather than sneaking out. She remembered how sneaking out that day had lead to interesting events. If she hadn't she thought she might never have met Mag, or that Graverobber who helped her get home. Her thoughts lingered on him for a while. Although he was somewhat a criminal figure, he had helped her. If he hadn't, there was no saying what would have happened to her - nor would she have found out that Mag of all people was her godmother. A small smile graced her lips as she made a point to thank him sometime.

She had been surprised that after only knowing her for virtually a day, Mag had been worried about her. When she'd told her that she cared about her Shilo felt an odd sensation, but that was probably because it was shocking to hear from the lips of her idol.

Shilo was not the only one absorbed in thoughts. Nathan was thinking back on the kiss he and Mag had. It had been pure impulse on his end, but he received a passionate response from Mag. He was unaware that she still posessed that passion for him after almost twenty years, but he couldn't say he regretted the kiss. _I'm sorry Marni. I may be falling in love with your best friend_. There was no saying how different things would be if Marni was still alive, but Nathan got the strange thought that he might have loved them both.


	2. Chapter 2

Somehow Nathan and Shilo had managed to get front row seats at the theater for Mag's performance. As they waited for the show to begin, they each realized something. Shilo realized this would be the first time she saw Mag perform live, and Nathan realized this would be the first time he heard Mag sing in years.

When Mag appeared on the stage the crowd went wild. She couldn't hold back her smile when she saw Nathan and Shilo in the audience. When the cheers died down she started her first song, watching the two almost the entire time. For the performance her heart was more into it than it had been in the past, which improved what was, believed by many, an already perfect performance. She felt as if she were singing for them. She mentally slapped herself for ever thinking about quitting.

Though she received many standing ovations and flowers of many kinds, she knew her performance had been for Nathan and Shilo. It had no revelance to GeneCo at all, and that was part of the beauty of it. While she didn't know when she'd be able to see them again, she knew they would be in each others hearts.

At home, when Shilo was supposed to be asleep, she was staring at her newly autographed poster of Blind Mag. She smiled widely. She had loved the concert and felt as if she'd been singing to her the entire time. She couldn't wait to see her again, tell her how good she was. That was when she got an idea. She rolled onto her back and picked up her holo-communicator from her nightstand. She didn't know if it would work, but she wanted to try. She hit a button and heard the mechanical voice say, 'State the name of who you wish to be connected to.' Shilo had no idea why she'd never tried this before. "Blind Mag." 'Due to the popularity of this user we ask you to state your name.' "Shilo Wallace."

_ _

Mag awoke to the sound of her holo-communicator talking at her. 'Incoming call from - Shilo Wallace. Do you wish to accept?' Shilo's name was said in her own voice. Mag's heart skipped a beat. "Yes." She waited a couple seconds. "Shilo - why are you calling?"

Shilo was thrilled that it worked. She smiled as she heard Mag's voice. "I just wanted to talk to you again. I know it's pretty late, but I wanted to know if this would work."

"Well, unfortunately, this is probably the only time I'll be able to talk without getting into trouble."

Shilo was curious but Mag sounded uncomfortable so she didn't ask. "I wanted to tell you you did really good at the concert."

Mag smiled. "Thank you, honey." She didn't let on to how much she truly appreciated the compliment.

"Mag," Shilo's voice cracked only the tiniest bit. "When are we going to see you again?"

Mag wanted to hug her. "I don't know, Shilo. Whenever I can get away, I will. You don't know how much I want to be with you and your father right now." She usually visited Marni's grave twice a month. She had already visited once and that night had counted as the second time. Mag hoped Rotti had less than a month to live. She didn't think she could wait that long.

Shilo was glad to have the knowledge that Mag wanted to be with them. "I don't want to get you in trouble." She still didn't know what she'd meant by that. "So could you call me when you can? I don't want to call at the wrong time."

Mag smiled. Hearing Shilo's voice was incredibly healing. Marni's had been healing as well. She briefly let her mind wander back to a time when she'd been blind. Someone had purposefully tripped her and Marni had come to her rescue like an angel. She had held her while she let out her shaken sobs and promised not to let anyone hurt her again. "I will."

"Oh, and Mag? Thank you. . .for everything."

It brought tears to Mag's eyes. She felt she should be the one thanking her. She had saved her from what would have been a premature death that, now knowing Nathan was a Repo Man and that Rotti's mind was warped, would probably have been by Nathan's hand. She cringed at the thought. "Oh, Shilo. . .You're welcome. I love you." Nathan had been right. Shilo was exactly like Marni.

Shilo let out a choked laugh. "I love you, too, Mag." That's what it had been. She'd discovered the 'odd sensation' she'd felt earlier.

"Well, we should both get back to bed."

"Probably," Shilo agreed.

"Good night, Shilo."

"Night, Mag."

The call was disconnected. Shilo felt warm. That conversation would suit her until they talked again. She placed the holo-communicator on her nightstand and laid down. She closed her eyes, now ready to fall asleep.

When Mag fell asleep she was greeted by happy dreams of living with Nathan and Shilo as a family. When Rotti croaked, that was what she hoped she'd be doing.

_ _

The next morning at breakfast Shilo asked her father, "Can I go outside today? See a new friend?"

Nathan narrowed his eyes. Had Shilo snuck out the day before more than he'd known? "New friend?"

"Yeah. Helped me out yesterday more than once." Shilo was very careful to leave out 'he'. She didn't want her father to throw a fit.

Nathan didn't want to know. Besides, he had lied to her her entire life and she rightfully hadn't been happy about it. He thought maybe if he gave her more freedom she would forgive him. He understood now that sealing her off from the world wouldn't make them any closer. She handled the outing to Mag's concert fine as well, and the reasons to say no were becoming scarce. "Take your mask, just in case. Don't stay out oo late."

Shilo was surprised he'd said yes without really questioning her. "Thank you, Dad." She hopped up from the table in excitement. She ran up to her room and looked through her closet. She chose her clothes carefully. She zipped back downstairs and out the front door. She no longer felt sequestered. She had forgotten to take her mask with her, but oh well. The point was she was free to be outside for a while.

She walked to the alley that Graverobber had taken her to. His junkies were strung out in various places.

Graverobber had just finished shooting Zydrate into yet another desperate female when he saw her. He turned, giving her his full attention. "Kid, is that you?" As she approached him he saw that it was. "What are you doing here?"

"I came here to thank you." Shilo stated as she came to a stop in front of him. "If it weren't for you I wouldn't have gotten to know my godmother. I got home at just the right time, and it was because you helped me."

Graverobber was intrigued by this. She sure was fascinating, to thank him after she saw him extracting Zydrate from corpses and then selling it. He couldn't deny he'd been attracted to her, it was part of what drove him to help her escape in the first place. "You're welcome, kid." He scanned her body, noticing how long and shapely her legs were.

Shilo could have turned around and left now that she'd payed her thanks, but she didn't. In fact she had a request for him, albeit it was an odd one. "Outside of my father, you're the only male I've ever known." She wasn't counting Rotti, she didn't feel she knew him. "Could I. . .kiss you?" She wanted to know what was so great about it like all the movies showed. You like someone, you kiss them, and they usually like you back. Like or love, anyway. It was needless to say she hadn't kissed anyone before. Besides, she liked him anyway.

Graverobber bit back a laugh. "You sure, kid?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. And could you quit calling me 'kid'? I'll be eighteen in a few months."

Graverobber let himself laugh. That was still a kid to him, although it was the legal age of adulthood.

Shilo took the advantage of catching him off guard. She'd placed her hands on his cheeks and pulled him to her. Feeling him respond proved the movies ring of truth about how great a kiss was. Although she was inexperienced she quickly learned, moving her tongue around his. It was great to feel his strong arms wrap around her and press her against him.

Graverobber couldn't say he hadn't wanted it. It had felt damned good, too. Better than his junkies for sure. _Damn, kid. _He thought. _You've got to come around more often._

When the kiss broke, the two just looked at each other. It were as if they were the only two in the alley. It didn't matter that Shilo was hald his age or that he was a grave robber and drug dealer. All that mattered was they had shared a wonderful kiss that neither wanted to be both the beginning and ending of their relationship.

Graverobber was the first to speak, not knowing it hadn't remained a thought, "You're beautiful."

Shilo's breath hitched in her throat. She was tempted to pull her wig off and ask him what he thought then but refrained. She managed, "Thank you." One of her small hands found one of his big ones. His almost swallowed hers as she held it. She didn't want to leave, except maybe to see Mag.

Just then, her holo-communicator told her to medicate immediately. She tore her hand from Graverobber to dig in her pocket. She'd brought some of her pills with her. She popped a couple into her mouth and swallowed them. The holo-communicator shut up. When Shilo saw the questioning look Graverobber was giving her, she explained, "I have a blood disease."

Her holo-communicator started up again. 'Incoming call from Magdalene DeFoe.' Shilo was confused for a second, then made the connection. "Mag?" she answered.

"You never said Blind Mag was your godmother." That was surprising to know. He had once been torturingly in love with her from a distance.

"Who was that?" Mag's voice rang through the holo-communicator.

"Just the TV," Shilo lied. She would much rather talk about what had just happened in person. She raised her finger to her lips, signaling for Graverobber to be quiet. "Aren't you working?"

"Not at the moment. I was wondering how you and your father are doing. I miss you more than you know."

"We're doing fine." Shilo did her best to sound normal.

"Hey, bitch!" A voice screamed in the distance.

"Mag, who's that?" Shilo worried slightly.

"Um, Amber Largo."

Graverobber rolled his eyes hearing the crazy bitch's name.

"Listen, sweetie. I need to go," Mag said in a rush before disconnecting the call.

"That was weird." Shilo murmured.

"The Voice of GeneCo is your godmother, huh?" Graverobber asked.

"Yeah. She was my mother's best friend."

"Lucky you."

"Yeah, lucky me." Shilo sounded glum. "I'm a bit worried about her now."

"Oh, she'll be fine. Amber's crazy and just jealous of her because her Daddy likes Blind Mag better than her." He wrapped his arm around Shilo. "I used to like her a lot."

"What happened?"

"Look at me, what I do. There is no chance she'd like me at all if she saw me, so why bother? Besides, you've stolen my interest."

Shilo looked up at him. "You can like more than one person like that. I like her, too."

She was certainly full of surprises. Graverobber was fascinated with her even more. "You like your own godmother like that?" That was a new kink.

"I think she likes me too. I know she likes my father."

_She has connected me to one intriguing dysfuncional family,_ Graverobber thought.

It was starting to get dark. "I should go. This won't be the last time you see me," Shilo promised. She hugged him goodbye. She then left the alley and returned home so her father wouldn't worry.

Deciding to take a shower, Shilo headed to the bathroom. she thought about what she'd said to Graverobber and in hindsight it still held truth. She thought it best not to let her father know any of it as she undressed for the shower. She wouldn't risk being seperated from the people she loved/

_ _

In his bedroom, Nathan jumped when he'd heard his holo-communicator talk, as he'd been deep in thought. 'Incoming call from Magdalene DeFoe.' He could have died. "Mag?" he asked hesitantly and almost in disbelief.

"Nathan!" She was crying. Nathan's heart nearly broke.

"What's wrong?" His voice was gentle.

"I've been marked for reposession!" Her sobbing broke up her words.

Nathan's stomach dropped. "What? Are you sure? How do you know?" He was not going to lay a hand on Mag if that was what Rotti was thinking.

"I'm looking at the reposession paper right now." That explained it. "Amber didn't want it to be a surprise so she barged in my dressing room and gave it to me."

Nathan's jaw clenched. "Why would he do that?"

"My driver tattled on me for being at your house last night. Nathan, I'm scared."

Nathan wished he were there with her. He wanted to hold her and soothe her tears. He had never heard her so frightened in the time he'd known her, even while she was blind and prone to stepping into cruel pranks and traps. "Mag, where are you?"

"At home."

"Walk over here. I'll hide you. I don't want you to get hurt."

"If only it were that easy I would." Mag had calmed enough so her sobs weren't breaking her words. "My house is guarded."

"Then sneak out."

"Nathan, I can't. I don't know what to do. I'm so sorry - I should have resigned on my own. It looks like I'd be dead either way."

"There has to be a way, Mag. You're not going to die. . ." Just then he got an idea. "Wait a second, I could get you out! I'll put on my repo gear and go over to your house, fool the guards, and take you away~"

"Hate to shoot down your plan, but that wouldn't work. The guards would ask Rotti if he'd sent a Repo Man after me yet and when he said no, you'd be dead. I'm sorry, I refuse to let Shilo lose both of us. It has to be me."

"No, Mag! It doesn't have to end like this." He was desperate.

"It does." She disconnected the call.

Nathan trudged out to the kitchen and yanked the refrigerator door open. He pulled out a bottle of alcohol he barely touched and pulled a glass from the cupboard. He filled it and sat glumly at the table. He drank from it, trying to drown the misery.

He didn't look up when Shilo entered the room.

"Dad?? Something was wrong. She spotted the bottle of alcohol on the counter and the nearly empty glass by him on the table.

"Mag's been marked for reposession." Nathan's voice was sullen and unfamiliar.

Shilo's heart dropped. "Dad, you-?"

"No, I haven't been assigned the task." He'd almost read her mind.

"We've got to help her!"

"We can't. I already talked to her. My idea of her escape wouldn't work, according to her. She doesn't want you to lose the both of us so she's not going to try getting away."

"Where's she at, Dad?"

"Her house. But it's guarded. She's stuck."

"I will not let her die."

"Shi, there's nothing we can do." His voice was soft as he looked her in the eye.

"Yes there is!" Shilo protested. She ran to her room and hastily got dressed. She had a plan. She ran out of the house as fast as she could, ignoring her father shouting her name.

She thought to check the graveyard first, since it was night. She figured he'd be taking Zydrate from corpses. When she saw that he wasn't she ran as fast as she could to the alley. she didn't want to waste time when Mag's life was on the line.

"Back already?" Graverobber asked after Shilo ran right into him.

"Mag's in danger!" Shilo informed as she regained her personal space. "We've got to help her!" She was shaking.

"Hey," Graverobber wrapped an arm around her. "Calm down. What's going on?"

"She's marked for reposession! She's stuck at her house with guards all over the place. I can't let her die!" She had remained strong until this point. She broke down crying.

"Ssh. Ssh." Graverobber rubbed her back. "We'll help her, she'll be fine." He didn't care what he looked like, he wasn't going to let Mag die for her own sake, Shilo's, and his. That old flame burst back into existence. He did still fancy her. If she survived, which she would, he would be willing to split his heart between the two.

Shilo pulled herself together and took Graverobber's hand. She started running with him when she realized she didn't know where Mag lived. She stopped, pressing a button on her holo-communicator.

_ _

Mag's holo-communicator began talking. 'Incoming call from - Shilo Wallace. Do you wish to accept?' "No." She couldn't talk to Shilo. It would be too painful.

Shilo's holo-communicator said, 'We are sorry, but the user has rejected your request.' Slightly hurt, Shilo pressed the button again.

When Mag heard the holo-communicator say the same thing for a second time she didn't have the heart to say no. It was hard enough the first time. "Shilo-"

"What's your address?" She'd nearly yelled the last word. "I'm coming to help." Her voice was soft now. "Please, just tell me."

Defeated, Mag told her her address. "Please don't hurt yourself."

She's sounded so pained in her request that Shilo wanted to hug her and never let go. "I won't, Mag. I love you!" She disconnected the call. She started to run with Graverobber again.

Graverobber admired Shilo's passion. "What's your plan, kid?"

The pet name was a comfort to Shilo. "I don't really have one past involving you," she admitted.

"Well, I'm glad you did. If you were to go alone both of you would probably die and that wouldn't be good."

Shilo flashed a look at him. "Thank you for caring." She meant it.

When they reached Mag's house an idea hit Graverobber. "Go get her. GRAAAAAVES!"

The guards took no notice of Shilo and focused on Graverobber. They closed in on him.

Shilo threw her head over her shoulder to look behind her. She saw the guards grab him and she wanted to cry out. She used it as energy to focus on her task. She whipped her head in front of her and tried opening the door. It was locked. She pounded on it. "Mag! Mag! Open up!" The thirty seconds it took Mag to open the door were agonizing.

Mag flung her arms around Shilo and Shilo raised her head at the right moment and caught her lips. She hugged and kissed Mag quickly before breaking away. She ignored Mag's stunned look and took her hand, pulling her out of the doorway. She tugged her towards the mob of guards, knowing Graverobber was somewhere in the middle.

Shilo furiously started grabbing the grown men and flinging them to the ground. It wasn't long before Mag started doing the same.

"Who are we looking for?" Mag asked as she flung another guard away.

"The man who helped save you!" Shilo answered.

Of course, the guards who were flung away were slowly getting to their feet and closing in on them. The women kept flinging them away, though. Graverobber was doing the same thing from where he was.

Shilo felt a stinging slap. She looked to see none other than Graverobber.

Graverobber gasped. "I'm sorry! I thought you were a guard!" He hugged her to add to his apology.

Mag had been seperated from Shilo and screamed her name.

Graverobber and Shilo held hands tightly, keeping one free to hit the guards. They started using their feet against them as well. It was Graverobber who hit the last guard between them and Mag.

Mag gasped and threw her arms around Graverobber and kissed him. He took her hand with his free one.

"Come on, we've got to run!" He lead the two in a sprint, holding tightly onto each of their hands.

They escaped the guards and kept running until Shilo's holo-communicator started its most repetitive saying, 'Medicate immediately. Medicate immediately.'

Shilo panicked. "I forgot my medicine!" Her panicking continued and caused her to faint.

Mag caught her, letting go of Graverobber's hand to do so. She flashed a worried look at him. "I need to get her home." She situated Shilo in her arms so her legs dangled over one arm and her other braced her back. She wanted to run but had to walk with the added weight.

Although Graverobber had been told she had a blood disease, he hadn't yet seen it take effect. He worried. "How often does this happen?"

"I don't know," Mag answered. "It happened once yesterday." She stopped walking for a moment. "Could you take her? I need to talk to her father."

Graverobber's answer was the action of taking Shilo into his own arms.

As soon as they were connected, Mag heard Nathan ask, "Is Shilo with you?" His worry dripped in his words.

"Yes."

"Are you safe?"

"Yes, I'm safe now, Nathan. Shilo's fainted though. I'm bringing her over."

"You're staying when you get back, you know that, right?"

Mag glanced at Graverobber. "I'll talk about this in detail later. . . but I think I'm in love with three people now and I think they all love me back."

"Live your life however you want, the important thing is you have one to live. I won't trap you here, but don't ever go back to your house or anywhere Rotti might look for you." Nathan was simply happy Mag was alive. He didn't care who the three people were, didn't want to know. "Just bring Shilo home quickly. If she goes too long without her medication, she could die."

That was reassuring. "I'll be there soon." She disconnected the call.

"Him and us two make up the three, don't we?" Graverobber asked as he walked along Mag's side.

"Yes, you do." Mag looked at him. "Thank you for assisting her in getting me away."

"I couldn't let her go alone."

"I'm glad you didn't. If this happened and no one had been around. . ." She choked up at the ending of her sentence.

Graverobber wished he had a free hand to comfort her. He leaned over carefully and kissed her cheek. "We'll get her home."

Mag smiled. "She loves you too, doesn't she?"

Although she hadn't said it, he could feel it. "Yes."

"I see why."

As they neared the house Mag took Shilo from Graverobber's arms. "I don't think Nathan would appreciate seeing Shilo in your arms. It's nothing against you -"

"I understand." So that was his kid's name. Shilo. Pretty. He kissed Mag briefly. "Shilo knows where to find me." He left them then, knowing he'd fulfilled his task.

Mag carried Shilo to the porch. "Nathan!" she called.

When Nathan answered the door he wanted to take Mag into his arms but out of necissity took Shilo instead. He took Shilo wordlessly to her room and Mag followed him.

Their day had been crazy, and Mag felt peace with the knowledge that it was ending.


	3. Chapter 3

Nathan hooked Shilo up to the machine. Its beeping was slower than normal which told him Mag had gotten there just in time. He gave her her medication and turned to Mag. "Thank you, Mag. She ran off and I got worried." He hugged her tightly and Mag hugged him back. "I'm glad she helped you escape, though. If you died. . ."

"Ssh, Nathan." Mag rubbed his back. "I'm here now, and that's all that matters." She kissed his temple.

Nathan pulled back. He rested his hand on her cheek and gently caressed the area under her eye with his thumb.

Mag closed her eyes, savoring his touch. His hand felt warm on her cool skin. "Oh, Nathan. . ." Her voice came out a longing whisper. Before she knew it, his lips were against hers.

This time Nathan had kissed her out of pure love. It was short lived because Mag pulled back.

"Nathan, have you been drinking?" She had tasted the alcohol. That stuff was just as evil as Rotti himself. It had been part of why they'd broken up all those years ago. It was a filthy habit and Mag didn't approve.

Nathan looked guilty. "I'm sorry, Mag." He'd briefly forgotten her hate of alcohol. If he'd remembered he wouldn't have kissed her until after he brushed his teeth.

"Why?" She wasn't asking why he was sorry.

"I was in pain. I felt helpless. You have no idea how badly I wanted to help you myself. No idea."

"Mag?" Shilo was awake.

Mag turned from Nathan and went to her. "Yes, honey."

"What happened?"

"You started panicking when you realized you didn't bring any of your medicine and blacked out. I had to carry you back home."

"You're safe now?"

"Yes, thanks to you, I'm safe now." Mag kissed her forehead.

"Welcome home, Shilo." Nathan approached them. He sat next to her on the bed. Mag was on her knees right next to the nightstand on the same side. "That one was way too close. I don't want you going outside unless Mag or I are with you."

Mag winked at her knowing Nathan wouldn't see it. She'd go outside whenever Shilo wanted. It was their secret, just like their love.

"Okay, Dad." She looked at him. "Where's Mag going to stay?"

"With us."

Shilo didn't bother fighting her smile. "Where will she sleep?"

Nathan looked down on Mag from his vantage point. "Wherever she's comfortable."

Mag looked up at him and into his eyes. She wanted to stay with Shilo, but she could see in Nathan's eyes that he wanted her to stay with him. She supposed she'd alternate each week or month or so. "I think I'll switch off with you both." Since she'd obviously caused him great worry, she figured she'd stay with Nathan first. "Go get rid of your alcohol breath and I'll meet you in your room." She told Nathan.

"Goodnight, Shi." He kissed his daughter's forehead.

"Goodnight, Dad."

Nathan left the room to do as Mag had asked.

Shilo took Mag's hand. "I didn't scare you when I. . .kissed you earlier, did I?"

"No, honey. You just surprised me. I didn't think I could love two, let alone three people."

"Don't tell Dad about Graverobber. I don't think he'd like it."

"Don't worry, honey. I won't." She kissed Shilo gently. She was surprised by the passion that had greeted her. "I love you, Shilo."

"I love you, too, Mag." She hugged her. "Goodnight." She whispered.

Mag caressed her cheek lovingly before leaving the room.

_ _

Nathan had been lying on the bed when she'd entered the room. "I know you didn't bring any clothing. Go to the closet – you'll find something you can wear."

Mag raised an eyebrow and headed to the closet. Unless he had acquired the hobby of dressing in drag, she didn't think there would be anything to find. When she opened the closet however, she saw rows upon rows of Marni's old clothing. "I can't believe you kept all this stuff," she stated while running her hands over the clothing. "Really, for seventeen plus years. . .wow. And they all look brand new." She pulled a beautiful red nightgown from the closet. Its beauty kept her in awe.

"Go put it on," Nathan said. He cocked his head in the direction of the door.

Mag took the nightgown to the bathroom and changed into it. She could smell Marni and tears came to her eyes. She had never thought she'd smell that scent ever again. She returned to Nathan's room with the clothes she'd been wearing that day draped over her arm. "How do I look?" she asked upon entering the room,

"Simply beautiful." Mag had looked more breathtaking than he'd expected.

Mag laid the clothes on the floor and got on the bed.

Nathan wrapped his arms around her. "I look ancient. You haven't aged a day. You're my ageless songbird."

Mag smiled. "You're not ancient, Nate." She leaned close. "Fresh breath?"

"Extremely."

Mag kissed him. The taste of peppermint toothpaste was far better than the taste of alcohol.

It had been so long since Nathan had felt a woman's body against him. He wrapped his arms around Mag's waist.

Mag hugged him close. She got under the covers and lay curled against him. "I think I'm actually going to go to sleep, now. I'm tired."

"I'm not stopping you." He ran his fingers through her long, wavy hair. "Just don't freak out if I'm not here when you wake up."

Mag nodded sleepily. She fell asleep not too much later.

_ _

Shilo dreamt of herself, Graverobber, and Mag. Three lucky lovers, so her dream stated. Each was saved from a terrifying death by another. Shilo wanted to cry as she watched the dream forms of Graverobber and Mag almost die. She was calmed by the many kisses the three shared after their lucky escapes. In her sleep she began to mutter, "Maggie, Graverobber." It was repeated multiple times in a voice drenched in love.

_ _

The next morning when Mag woke up Nathan wasn't there as he'd hinted the night before. She stretched. She tried not to think about what Rotti was probably making him do. She tiredly got to her feet and padded her way to Shilo's room. She yawned. She came to the edge of her bed and gently woke the sleeping Shilo. "I think we're on our own this morning," she stated.

Shilo hugged her tightly, both liking and hating her dream. "Morning, Maggie."

_Maggie, huh? _Mag liked the old nickname being used in a new way. "Morning, Shilo. Come downstairs with me, I'll make you breakfast."

Shilo squinted her eyes and groaned. "Too early," she complained. Besides that, she didn't want to let go.

Mag had been accustomed to waking up at all hours of the day. She looked at a clock. Six. Maybe that was too early. "Okay, we don't have to go downstairs yet."

Shilo used the hug to pull Mag down on the bed with her. "Stay a while," she requested.

Mag laughed. She hadn't expected to be toppled over. "Okay." She got into a more comfortable position.

"Will you come with me to see Graverobber later? I want him to know I'm alright."

"Of course. I want to see him as well. . .last night he's the one who carried you most of the way home."

Shilo smiled at the thought of it. He had seemed more caring since Shilo went to him the second time.

"Seemed genuinely concerned about you, too. I approve."

Shilo laughed. "Don't think you would've fallen for him if you hadn't."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right." She caught Shilo's eyes. They were beautiful. She rested her hand on her cheek. "I bet he fell for your eyes."

Shilo smiled and moved to rest her head on her chest. "Oh, Maggie. . ."

Mag smiled in silence, gently stroking Shilo's arm.

"I'm really glad you're my godmother."

The statement made Mag want to cry. "I'm glad I am, too,"

Shilo yawned. "I'm still tired."

Mag sat up. "Well then, tell you what. How about you catch some more sleep while I go make breakfast. It will be ready when you wake up."

"Okay." She kissed Mag gently, loving the way her lips felt against hers. It felt so good she couldn't tell whose was better – Mag's or Graverobber's.

There was nothing wrong with their relationship in Mag's eyes. You love who you love, you can't help it. "See you soon." She kissed Shilo's cheek before getting off the bed. She headed to the kitchen.

Upon arriving, she began exploring the cupboards and fridge, seeing what she had to work with. She was thinking up many possible breakfast ideas as she did so. When she found pancake batter, she knew that was what she was going to make. When Marni had been pregnant with Shilo she had always been craving pancakes.

_ _

Nathan's job had never been an easy one. He stood in Rotti's office and received the assignment he never wanted to have. He was given the job of repossessing Mag's eyes. He thought it best not to protest, although he certainly wasn't going to do what Rotti wanted.

For an extra incentive Rotti threw in, "If I don't receive Mag's eyes by tonight – I'm taking Shilo. You'll never see her again. So it would be of your best interest to bring me Mag's eyes."

Nathan said nothing. He would fine his way around it, somehow. Even if it ended in his own death, Shilo would have Mag to take care of her. She wouldn't be alone and that was the most important thing. He set home with a heavy heart, trying to think of a way to avoid hurting his loved ones.

_ _

Graverobber had known Amber to make crazy changes to the appearance of her body, but her latest was the strangest one yet. She had replaced her eyes with exact duplicates of Blind Mag's. Graverobber came to the conclusion that jealousy drove people to odd measures. "You're treading on identity theft; you do know that, don't you?" Amber's creepy smirk was enough to make him nervous.

"Daddy doesn't know about the surgery yet, but when he does I'll take over as the Voice of GeneCo!" She was sure her new plan to take over the stage would work.

Graverobber honestly didn't care. "And you think no one will know the difference?" _You can't sing, you dumb bitch_.

Amber laughed. "They'll be grateful Blind Mag finally got singing lessons. Since Daddy's marked her for repossession she'll be unable to interfere and no one will know she's gone."

_You talk too much_. "Why do you tell me these things?" He was weary of Amber being around him. He internally laughed at her as well, since she obviously hadn't heard of the past night's events.

"Because I want you to know." After a quick pause she added an afterthought. "That once I'm Voice of GeneCo – I'll still have time for my hits of Z, and for you." She whispered the last part into his ear.

_Please, spare me! _Graverobber did not enjoy Amber's presence. He would much rather replace it with Shilo or Mag. After the night before, his feelings for them were hurtling forward at a fast speed. He wasn't exactly sure how he'd juggle them and his job, but he would manage. "Isn't your father dying?"

Amber smirked. "So?"

_Wow, she is a heartless bitch_.

"Just saying that when he dies, GeneCo will fall. It won't need a Voice anymore." With that he walked away, leaving Amber standing in a puzzled silence.

_ _

Mag and Shilo were dressed and getting ready to leave to see Graverobber when Nathan returned.

"Mag." His voice sounded so pained, the woman in question was drawn to him, concern written clearly on her face. "He's done it. He's given me the task of repossessing your eyes. He wants them by tonight." His throat was constricting and he looked as if he were going to cry. Mag was quick to pull him close, her hand resting on the nape of his neck.

"We'll think of something, Nate." She rubbed his back slowly with her other hand. "I promise we'll think of something." The last came out a choked whisper.

Pulling back slightly, Nathan caressed her cheek. Her eyes were downcast, as if she were afraid to look at him. "Mag."

Mag looked up and pressed a finger to his lips. "Don't speak." She kissed him and it tasted of sadness. Nathan pressed her against him desperately, as if it would be the last time they kissed. It wouldn't be, Mag knew it.

Shilo, who had followed Mag curiously, was silently watching. She couldn't help but think Graverobber would know what to do. She knew she shouldn't be so dependant on him, but it was a dangerous situation and he was the expert in dangerous situations. She wanted to go up to them and reassure them that everything would be fine. She knew Mag was trying to convince her father of that, but she knew she was putting up a miserable fight to keep her composure. She could almost sense that the tears would boil over as soon as they were alone.

When Mag told Nathan, "Shilo and I were about to take a walk before you came home." Shilo knew the bottle was about to burst.

"Leave through Marni's tomb when you go. I don't want to risk Rotti –"

"I know." She gave him a quick kiss. "We won't be too long." Her heart was in her throat when she turned and saw Shilo had been watching them. Quickly walking to where Shilo stood, she took her hand. "Come on, Shilo." Her was voice was cracking even then.

Shilo lead the way to the tunnel leading to Marni's tomb. She squeezed her hand gently, willing her to stay strong. When they got outside Mag broke. Shilo had been ready for it. She held her crying godmother close.

"I-I'm s-sorry," Mag tried to apologize for crying through her tears.

Shilo wiped her tears away, her fingertips gently stroking her cheeks in a soothing manner as she did so. "It's okay. You're scared." She kissed her, and she could taste the lingering salt of the tears.

"I'm weak."

"It's okay to be weak sometimes. We all have our weak moments. . .you don't have to hide yours from me."

Mag wanted to protest, but she couldn't. She knew it was true. She could trust Shilo with her life and at that moment she was. A part of her felt bad about dumping herself on a seventeen year old girl, but Shilo was mature beyond her years. She was tough, tougher than her. She could be the shoulder to cry on once in a while.

"I love you, Maggie." She wrapped an arm around her waist.

"I love you, too, Shilo." She kissed the top of her head. "I don't know how I've ever lived without you and your father."

Since the tears had dried, Shilo started walking with Mag to the alley. "Let's see Graverobber."

"Maybe he'll know how to solve this mess."

"That's what I'm hoping." Shilo tried not to think about how they had until that night to figure something out. She looked up at Mag and stole a loving kiss.

The two weren't paying attention to where they were going and soon bumped into the man they were going to see.

Graverobber had been about to let out a snide remark, but bit it back when he recognized who'd ran into him. "Well, if it isn't my two love birds." He wrapped his arms around both of them in a hug. They hugged him back gratefully. The three raised their heads at the same time and the oddest thing happened. All three of their lips met in a kiss. It was the strangest, most beautiful kiss.

"We've got another problem," Shilo stated as they recovered from the discovery.

Graverobber's eyes shifted to Mag. "You're still up for repossession." It was a statement.

"The deadline's tonight." Mag did her best not to think of Nathan.

"My father was given the job. He won't willingly hurt her, but he needs something to make what's-his-name think he did it," Shilo explained.

"I see." Graverobber's train of thought headed straight for Amber. "It will be easy enough to fool Rotti." The women looked at him questioningly. "Mag, you know Amber, right? She bitches about you all the time. Her jealously has taken on a new level. She replaced her eyes with exact replicas of yours. Said her father didn't know it yet. Shilo, all your father has to do is get her and give her eyes to Rotti as proof."

Mag started laughing. She hugged Graverobber tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Relief showed in her voice.

Shilo smiled. It was a piece of cake. "Hey, you stopped calling me 'kid'." She observed.

"I thought you didn't like it." Graverobber said it in a teasing manner as he returned Mag's hug.

"Well, I miss it. It's not that bad."

"Alright. . .kid."

Mag giggled. "I love you two!"

Shilo smiled and slipped away to call her father, giving them some privacy.

"Shilo?" Came her father's voice.

"Yes. I know how to save Mag." In her excitement she was talking fast. "You know what's-his-name's daughter Ashley or something has eyes exactly like Mag's and what's-his-name doesn't know it yet! All you need to do is get her and take her eyes to him."

"Wait a minute, how do you know all this?"

"We just know, Dad. Do you want to save Mag or not?" She knew she was being cross.

"Well, no matter how you know, thank you. I love you, Shi."

"Love you, too, Dad." She disconnected the call. She snuck back to her two loves who were kissing passionately. She smiled because she'd known Mag would love him.

When they noticed her reappearance they drew her in. Even with their different heights they managed to three-way kiss effectively. Neither wanted one left out, for their love was equal. All three held onto each other, Graverobber and Mag with each other and Shilo.

"I don't think we see enough of you." Mag told Graverobber. "But we make up for it with the time we have."

"Thanks for telling us about Ashley or whoever. I don't think we can thank you enough."

"Well, kid, I wasn't about to let our love die."

Mag hugged them both, feeling lucky to be loved by so many. Her thoughts switched gears. "Did you take your medicine today yet, Shilo?"

"No." Shilo had a habit of forgetting.

"You should go fix that, then. We don't need you fainting on us again." Graverobber held a strange sense of fatherly figure.

Shilo pouted. He was right and she knew it. She didn't want to leave him so quickly.

"He's right, we should go back." Mag took Shilo's hand.

Shilo knew what the smarter thing to do was, but it wasn't what she wanted to do. She reached out with her free hand to take Graverobber's.

"It's not like you'll never see me again, kid." He caressed her hand gently with his thumb. He kissed her softly and quick. "Go on now." He caught Mag's eyes, giving a slight nod. "Stay safe." He let go of Shilo's hand.

"I will," Mag promised. She then led Shilo away.

"I called Dad. Told him what Graverobber had said for him to do."

"That's good. He'll probably be gone when we get back, then." They were still hand in hand.

"Get used to it. He's gone a lot, Maggie." She sounded a bit bitter about that.

"Well, that's alright. I enjoy the time together we get to have alone." She sent a smile Shilo's way. The smile was contagious because Shilo smiled back.

"I do, too. I. . .I just miss my Dad sometimes. I know he has to do what he has to do, but it takes his time up."

"That's understandable." The way Shilo was looking at her was compelling her to say anything that would be of comfort. She let go of her hand to wrap her arm around her. "He does what he can, though."

Shilo let her head rest on Mag's shoulder. "I know. I'm glad I've got you now, I won't be as lonely anymore."

It hadn't taken long to get back to the house. As Mag had predicted, Nathan wasn't there. The two ascended the stairs to Shilo's bedroom. Mag got the medicine ready for her and Shilo took it.

Sighing, Shilo looked out the window at the giant television. It was boasting a new technology that allowed GENterns and surGENs to replace your face – coming in 2057, the next year. Pavi Largo was its poster boy. Mag followed Shilo's gaze and shook her head.

"What more are they going to think up?" GeneCo was causing the meaning of being human to be nearly entirely lost.

"Clones," Shilo suggested.

Mag smirked. "Don't think that'll happen anytime soon." She sat down on Shilo's bed, turning her attention to the smaller TV on her dresser. It was playing her performance from the previous night. "That is me," she stated with a smile. "Usually when I'm performing I don't feel like myself, but that time it was definitely me. I was singing for you and your father."

Shilo joined her on the bed. "I felt that. It was as if I were the only audience member." She ran her hands through Mag's hair. "Your hair is so pretty. If I had hair, I'd want it to be like yours. Soft, wavy. . .all I've got is a straight, black, scratchy wig."

"Oh, Shilo. I appreciate the compliment but your father put hard work into your wig. It would hurt him to hear you talk about it like that." Looking to her, she added, "Besides, you're beautiful on your own, without the help of wigs or hair."

Encircling Mag's waist with her arms, Shilo propped her head up on her shoulder, "I don't have to ask to know you mean that." She kissed her quickly on the curve of the neck. "And it means a lot t me, but I just disagree." She let out a light sigh. "I love you, though. Forever and always. You and Graverobber have claimed my heart – and it will be yours for the rest of my life."

Mag patted her hands, which were resting on her stomach. "I love you, too, honey."

Returning to a normal sitting position, Shilo asked, "Since dad isn't home yet and there's no set time that he'll be back, could you sleep in here tonight?"

"I don't see why not." Mag took her eyes off the screen to look at Shilo. "I could sure use the company." She sprawled out on the bed. "Comfy. I like this bed."

Shilo laid next to her. "I don't feel like changing. I just want to lay here and be with you." She reached over and grasped Mag's hand. "TV – off." The television shut off with the voice command. Searching her eyes she asked, "What was it like to be blind? Did you feel safer when you wee in the dark than you do now?"

Sighing, Mag answered, "If I could do it over again I would have stayed blind. Your mother was the entire reason behind these new eyes of mine. She'd wanted me to see her so badly that I went through with it."

Shilo stroked her hand softly with her thumb. "I bet she thought sight would keep you safer than you were without it."

"I bet she did. It's sad that you never knew her; she was a wonderful person." An idea struck. "I don't have many memories of her after my surgery, but I could show you then ones I do have, if you'd like."

As Shilo spoke, her voice slightly trembled, "Would you?"

Mag thought back, trying to recollect all the memories she had of Marni after her surgery. Her digital eyes replayed them like a movie.

_ _

"_Mag. Maggie – you awake?" Marni was leaning over the hospital bed, her head shielding Mag from the light's harsh glare. Her curly hair framed her porcelain skin in a delicate manner._

_ "Marni?" Came Mag's voice_. Since the memory was in her point of view she couldn't be seen. _"Is that you?"_

_ "Yes, Maggie. It's me."_

_ Mag had lifted Marni's left hand into view. A large diamond ring sat on her third finger. "Marni, a ring means something. You don't need eyes to know that."_

_ Marni's voice had lowered to a hushed tone. "I'm marrying Rotti. It was the only way I knew how to thank him for doing this for you. . .for me."_

_ The view shifted slightly when Mag shook her head. "You didn't need to do that." Marni leaned in and kissed her cheek. "It will be worth it."_

The next memory was when Marni began getting pre-natal cold feet.

_"Maggie." The two were sitting on the couch in Mag's living room. "I feel so nervous all of a sudden. I – I'm not sure I can go through with the wedding." She frantically searched Mag's eyes for an answer._

_ "Then don't."_

_ "But. . .Maggie, what about your contract? I'm afraid he'll hurt you if I back out of the marriage."_

_ "The man who cured the world of an epidemic? I don't think so."_

Present time Mag snorted, knowing how wrong her past statement had been.

_Marni visibly relaxed. "Oh, Maggie – you're the best! What would I do without you?" She hugged her, _which lead to the next memory.

_"Marni, I'd like you to meet Nathan, an old boyfriend of mine."_

_ The look on Marni's face defied description. Mag had sensed she had made Marni's life a great deal happier._

The memory moved onto one of the more sentimental ones.

_As Mag walked down the hall, she heard the sound of crying coming from the bathroom. (Marni had been staying the night with her) Concern drew her to the door. Her own hand came into view as she knocked. "Marni, is everything alright?"_

_ Not too soon after, Marni was standing before her, the bathroom door wide open. "I think you're going to be mad at me." Tears were still staining her cheeks. Mag brushed them away._

_ "Why would I even be angry at you?"_

_ "I think I'm falling in love with Nathan."_

_ "Why would I be angry about that? Marni, that's great! Nathan and I – we're over. It's a good thing. Whatever makes you happy makes me happy, you know that."_

_ Again, visible relief. "Thank god! I really do think I love him. . ."_

_ "Honey, that is wonderful."_

Next memory.

_ "I want you to be my Maid of Honor at the wedding."_

_ "Wait, what?"_

_ Marni smirked. "Did you forget already or did I just not tell you?" The sound of her voice made it obvious she was messing with her._

_ "Marni. . ."_

_ "Nathan and I are engaged!" She showed Mag the ring, which was much simpler than the one she'd worn when she'd been engaged to Rotti._

_ "I am so happy for you!" She stated while jumping, making the view shake._

Mag moved to the next memory.

_"Maggie! Maggie!" Marni was running to her excitedly from her car. She'd nearly flown out of it to get to her._

_ "What is it?" Mag had been getting ready to leave for work._

_ "Nathan and I –" Marni was out of breath. "We're going to have a baby!"_

_ Mag gasped. "That's amazing! You two are going to be the best parents."_

Wait a minute," Shilo interjected. "What about the wedding?"

"I wasn't allowed to go. Rotti forbade me. I've always regretted not being there." She resumed playing her memories.

_Marni and herself were sitting at the kitchen table at the Wallace residence._

_ Groaning in longing, Marni asked, "Nathan, when are those pancakes going to be finished?"_

_ "When they're ready to get eaten." Nathan had abandoned the stove to kiss his wife._

_ "Shilo and I are ready to eat now!" she whined._

_ "Shilo?" Nathan questioned._

_ Marni patted her stomach. She was in the second trimester. "That's her name."_

_ "How do you know it's a girl?" Mag asked._

_ "I can feel her. I can feel her passion, her love. There is no way this baby is a boy. I haven't gotten one of those infamous kidney shots yet."_

_ Nathan smiled. "Shilo. I like it."_

The next memory wasn't so happy.

_Marni lay on the hospital-like bed Nathan had made up for her. She was sickly pale and looked dead to the world in her sleep. The vision was quickly blurred and bounced back to clear just as quickly. She was well into her third trimester by this point. Her eyes slowly cracked open and lit up once they saw her. "Maggie." She sounded weak._

_ Mag walked to her bedside, allowing her to take her hand._

_ "Nathan is trying desperately to find a cure for me. I've missed you."_

_ "I've missed you, too."_

_ "I personally think I'm running out of time."_

_ "Don't talk like that, Marni. You're going to get better."_

_ Marni put on a smile, just so Mag would feel better. "This is a just in case thing, alright?"_

_ Mag nodded. "Alright."_

_ "Just in case." She made sure to put emphasis on the three words. "I don't make it – I want you to be Shilo's godmother. No matter what, I want you to be present in Shilo's life. Can you do that for me?"_

_ "Of course I'll be her godmother, Marni."_

_ "Good." Marni pulled her down to look into her eyes. "I don't know when I'll see you again, so I want you to promise me."_

_ "I promise I will be present in Shilo's life." Her expression couldn't be seen but her voice was choked. She looked down in surprise when Marni took her hand and placed it on her stomach._

_ "She knows you're here, now."_

_ Mag slowly looked back up to her. Just then her holo-communicator went off. 'Message from Rotti Largo.' "I'm late." She slowly began to stand upright. She paused when Marni grabbed her wrist._

_ "I love you, Maggie."_

_ "I love you, too, Marni."_

_ _

"That was the last time I saw your mother." Mag let the graphics fade away.

Shilo rolled into her and cried into her shoulder. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She threw her arms around her. "I will love you until the end of time for this!" She had given her something irreplaceable, something she had lacked her entire life – memories of her mother.

Mag rubbed her back. "You're welcome. I know it's not the real thing, but –"

"It's the closest to it I'm ever going to have! Thank you!" She kissed her, eternally grateful. She tried pouring all her love into the kiss without going into overdrive.

The kiss coaxed Mag's own tears from hiding. She had been reminded of just how bad of a loss the death of Marni had become.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: I must interrupt to apologize for my late update. The length should make up for it. Since my muse has returned to me, hopefully my updates will be more frequent.**

Graverobber stood in the alley against a brick wall, deep in thought. He was truly in love with two women now, and they were truly in love with him as well as each other. He couldn't remember exactly how it had happened because it had happened far too fast. He knew now, though, that his hard work at trying to remain as inhumane and incompassionate as he could had slipped down the drain. He should have sensed it coming, after helping his kid out so much in one day. True, the first time had been to save his own skin as well. Selfishness saved his neck on that one, but the others, along with helping Mag, went completely excuseless. He had gone soft at a rapid pace, rapid enough that he was soft enough to not be angry with the fact that he was soft. He was almost lightheartedly welcoming the old feelings of humanity back into his blood, into his heart. He noticed how he no longer looked at women as potential sex objects anymore, but with total uninterest, or in rare cases, respect. Amber was a different story, and he was glad she would be dead by the next day.

Coming to the resolution that he still needed to earn a living, he set out to a graveyard. The graveyard he'd met Shilo in, to be more precise. His thoughts circulated around her and her condition. He remembered what he'd heard her father say through Mag's holo-communicator the previous night. He had said if she went too long without her medicine she would die. If that ever happened, Graverobber knew he'd be very sad. If he lost either one of them, the wound would be hard to patch.

Arriving at the graveyard, he shook his head to clear his mind. He couldn't be sentimental while doing his job, because if he were, he could no longer do the job. Not able to let that happen, he built up his wall against his emotions as he approached the first tombstone.

_ _

Amber hadn't exactly been easy to find. What was harder that that was Nathan had to look for her while remaining out of sight. She had changed her looks so many damn times he barely recognized her.

Once he'd spotted her from his hiding spot, all it took was a glance at the eyes to know it was her. After pouncing on her, knocking her to the pavement, the first thing he did was rip off her holo-communicator and smashed it. He couldn't have her trying to call her father for help. _This is for Mag, you selfish little brat! _His thoughts were a combination of Nathan and Repo Man.

Placing a large hand over her mouth to stifle her screaming, he pulled a scalpel from his bag with the other.

Amber's eyes widened in fear, giving him the perfect opportunity to do his task. He dug the scalpel into her left eye. It was smooth, quicker than he'd thought it would be. The sounds were sickening as he scooped the eye from her socket. Through his other hand, he could feel the vibrations of her scream.

The scalpel was dug into Amber's chest next, to kill her and shut her up for good. He hacked away until she went limp beneath him and the scalpel was stained crimson.

Deed being done, he then popped the second eye from its socket. He pocketed them and abandoned Amber's body. He would return home briefly to wash his Repo Man outfit. He knew Mag and Shilo wouldn't want to see him in it. He needed to change as well. Afterwards he would take 'Mag's' eyes to Rotti.

_ _

Upon entering his bedroom, he noticed Mag wasn't there. _She must be staying with Shilo tonight_. It was better that she hadn't been the room to see him, anyway. He took off one rubber glove and held it in his gloved hand carefully. He grabbed a clean outfit and smock before heading down the stairs to his hidden lair.

After changing, he hung the Repo Man outfit on a clothesline and hosed it off.

_ _

The eyes on Rotti's desk stared at nothing. "Happy now?" Nathan questioned. The hurt came easily to his voice. "She was Marni's best friend." His voice was a whisper. It was all the more convincing that he'd actually done the job this way.

"Extremely." Rotti's intimidation was greatly lowered by a sudden coughing fit. After it was over he dismissed, "I have no new assignments. You may go."

Nathan wasted no time in leaving. He wanted to see his family again, let Mag know it was okay to relax. Of course she would need to be extremely careful not to be seen by anyone, but that was a small price to pay to be alive and with the people she loves.

Of course, the two were probably asleep so the news would wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow - that was a day Mag would be thankfully able to see. A weight lifted from his heart as he thought he might be able to sleep in peace that night.

_ _

Time had slowed Shilo's and Mag's tears to a stop. They laid on the bed, Shilo's head resting under Mag's chin, Mag stroking the hair of Shilo's wig.

"I'm happy I got to help you see more of your mother." Her voice was full of affection.

"I'm so glad you could. It was almost hard to believe the baby she was carrying was me, even when she said my name. Hearing her voice was. . .it's something I'll always treasure."

"As it should be." Mag kissed the top of her head. "Do you see how much like her you are now?"

"I see that she loved you just as much as I do."

Mag hadn't seen that, and now that she was aware, she was surprised she hadn't.

"When she was crying, when she was falling in love with Dad, she thought you'd be angry with her because she thought you loved her."

Mag realized with a sudden pang of overwhelming sadness that she had. Although her love hadn't touched the physical boundary, she had loved her. Marni had loved her as well. It made sense now. Her last memory of her was now clear. She wasn't just saying she loved her as a friend, she loved her more than that.

She let out a gasp as she realized she was making up for lost time in the present by loving Shilo. The love she felt for her was an extension of the love she'd felt for Marni.

Shilo looked up curiously, getting a close up of the side of her face.

"I did love her. . .I just didn't see it."

"I'm sure if she were alive you would have the same kind of relationship you, Graverobber, and I have. If I could change history, that's what I would have wnated to happen."

Mag pulled back for a good view of Shilo's face. She placed a hand on her cheek. "I like things just the way they are. With you." She kissed her gently. She was afraid that by admitting she'd loved Marni, Shilo thought she would have been happier with her. "My past love for her doesn't change my current love for you, I hope you know that." She didn't want Shilo to be hurt. She kissed Shilo again. She could taste her mixed emotions.

"I just want to sleep now, Maggie." She curled into her.

"Tell me I haven't hurt you first - it was the last thing I intended." Mag was worried.

Shilo looked up to her. "You helped me, Maggie. You could never hurt me." Her voice had wavered. "I just miss Mom now. You don't need to worry, just get some sleep. You deserve it." That said, she curled herself into Mag again and dozed off.

Mag fixed her eyes to the ceiling, not really looking. She could feel Shilo breathe against her. She was trying to get rid of her growing paranoia about what Shilo had said and that she might not have meant it. "I do love you, Shilo." It was spoken subconsciously. She forced her thoughts elsewhere.

_ _

Graverobber extracted a vial full of Zydrate from what must have been the twentieth corpse of the night. There were plenty more bodies left to rob the Zydrate from. The amount of burials doubled each day. Moving to the next grave, Graverobber vaguely wondered if people even bothered holding funerals anymore. He rarely saw people mourning their beloved deceased as it was. That was better for his sake, however.

The extraction of Zydrate was quick indeed; in no longer than another twenty minutes he had one hundred fifty vials in his posession. He figured that should last for a couple days. Creeping into the depths of the night, away from the graveyard, Graverobber allowed his thoughts to travel back to his loves.

His loves - he'd been connecting them to the word 'love' a lot, lately. He couldn't recall in hindsight if he'd ever voiced the expression 'I love you' directly to the both of them. Even if he had, he thought he should say it again for good measure. He briefly wondered when it was that the transition from hard-shelled graverobber to fairy tale prince occured, but he simply couldn't bring himself to care. He supposed underneath all the dirt and rubble he was a decent, loving man and only practiced rashness to match his surrounding world. He certainly hadn't been born in a compassionate era. Besides, Shilo and Mag were the only ones to see his emotional side, for lack of a better word. He kept up with his rude demeanor around anyone and everyone else.

Thinking about them gave Graverobber a sense of longing. He couldn't recall when he'd actually missed someone last, especially when it had only been a few short hours since he'd seen them, but nonetheless he found himself missing Shilo and Mag. Other than that, he couldn't help other than to wonder about the success of his idea to trick Rotti. He would hate for anything to have gone wrong. He imagined he couldn't be as nervous as Mag, whose life would be on the line if Rotti ever caught on to the scheme.

Glancing down at his wrist, at his long-forgotten holo-communicator, a feeling that resembled hope struck him. Or maybe it was inspiration. He hadn't experienced enough positive feelings lately to decipher them immediately. Whatever the feeling, it was the force behind his decision to the test the holo-communicator out. It may have been older than most, caked with dirt, and possibly contained a dead battery - but it was worth a shot.

Trying all the different buttons, he finally found the one he wanted. When prompted with, 'State the name of who you wish to be connected to.' Graverobber decided it would be Mag. "Blind Mag." He was again greeted by the mechanical voice in its programmed response to the request, 'Due to the popularity of this user we ask you to state your name.' He knew he couldn't just say 'Graverobber' and even if he wanted to use it, she wouldn't recognize his name. He decided to use a code name, thinking she'd recognize his voice. "The Savior."

_ _

Mag jumped when she heard a voice, only to realize it was her holo-communicator. She hadn't fallen asleep, but the room had been dead silent until that moment. It took her a second to register what it was saying. 'Incoming call from - The Savior. Do you wish to accept?' 'The Savior' was said in Graverobber's voice. _Graverobber? _She was briefly confused due to her disorientation. "Yes," she answered quietly. She slipped away very carefully out of Shilo's bed. She snuck out of the room and down the hall to the bathroom. She sat on the toilet. "You do have a concept of what time it is, don't you?" Although she had not slept, her voice was groggy.

Graverobber was pleased to hear the sound of her voice as he leaned against the wall of his alley. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to know you're alright."

"Shilo's sleeping, you're lucky you didn't wake her." What he;d said just then dawned on her. "Why wouldn't I be alright?"

"If the plan went wrong. . .oh, never mind. I'm just watching my imagination cook up strange ideas. And why are you so sure my waking her would be unwelcome?"

"Because she stopped nearly in the middle of a conversation with me because she wanted to sleep. That's why."

"Did I wake you?"

"No. Haven't went to sleep."

That predictably stirred Graverobber's curiousity. "Why not?"

"Too busy trying not to think. Could you not ask about what it is I'm referring to? I don't want to talk about it, either."

"Whatever you want." Graverobber had learned the hard way that you couldn't get a woman to tell you something they didn't want to tell you without paying a price.

Mag sighed and then yawned. "Well, I should go try to salvage sleep for what's left of the night."

"That would do you good." Graverobber had originally been going to stop there, but in an instant decided to come out with it. "I love you. You and Shilo. I wanted you to know."

Despite the general crappiness Mag was feeling, the statement brought a smile to her face. "I love you, too. I'll see what I can do about seeing you tomorrow. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Mag." The call had served his purpose. He squished his worry down of something going wrong, pacifying it with the knowledge that Mag, as well as Shilo, was safe.

Mag snuck back to Shilo's room as silently as she could. She laid back down on the bed and attempted sleep. She tossed and turned. In the end she wound up in her original position, on her back, and broke down. Her mind was not giving her the peace to do anything else.

If she were going to cry, which she already was, she wanted to do it silently. She was denied of that wish. As hard as she tried, she couldn't keep her sobs silent. The best she could do was muffle her mouth with her hands, and even that didn't help much. Her body shook involuntarily with the sobs. The tears streamed down her face with a speed so fast it was impossible to tell where one tear ended and another began.

Her thoughts were not only focused on Marni and Shilo, but Nathan as well. She had almost been hiding her relationships from him and she suddenly felt very guilty. It was all she could do not to scream his name.

It was wonderous as to how Shilo had remained asleep until that point. She woke and immediately felt a lump in her throat at the sight of Mag so hysterical. Compelled by the need to comfort her, she hoisted her into a sitting position. "Maggie, Maggie - please." She thought it was because of what she'd said earlier, which part of it was. She hugged her. "Please don't cry. I don't want you to be upset." She placed her hand on her cheek to wipe away her tears, but they were flooding so fast that the tears that were wiped away were replaced by fresh ones in a second.

Neither noticed when the door to Shilo's bedroom opened. Nor did they hear footsteps until Nathan was standing next to the bed. "What's wrong?" He had heard her from his room. It sounded like she had been tortured. Either having a reposession over her head scared her deeply, or she had become even more frail with her emotions over the years, perhaps both. He didn't bother waiting for an answer before taking her into his arms.

"She showed me her memories of Mom after she got her eyes. I think reliving them after so long has uncovered old wounds." Shilo stated. Of course, that was only part of what she believed the problem to be.

Mag had weakly curled herself into Nathan. She cried into his shoulder. She couldn't talk if she'd wanted to. She was a wreck. Her arms were loosely wrapped around him.

"Come on, Mag." Nathan would do nearly anything to calm her. He lifted her off the bed.

Shilo hopped up and threw her arms around the both of them. She stood on tiptoe to kiss Mag's cheek while in her father's arms. "Feel better." A lone tear streaked down her cheek. "Take care of her, Dad." The look she gave him was enough to make anyone listen. She watched as he carried Mag out of her room. As she got back into bed, alone, she vowed to make Mag feel happy and nothing less the next day.

_ _

Nathan sat Mag down on his bed and took her hands, caressing them with his thumbs softly. Her shaking was sending vibrations to his hands and throughout his body. Deciding to try a new technique, he sat next to her on the bed and held her. "If you're worried about the reposession, it's over, my darling. Rotti took the bait. He believed I really had your eyes." He felt Mag shake her head, as if she were trying to tell him that wasn't what she was upset about. He kissed her temple, "I love you." It was scarcely audible, he'd almost been afraid to admit it. It only seemed to make Mag cry harder. Although it had been a stab at his ego, he couldn't take Mag's not responding personally.

His hands made their way to her shoulders. They were tense under the material of Marni's old dress. He began to gently massage them, and her muscles relaxed beneath his fingers. Time slipped on and Mag's cries slowed. They became soft whimpers before stopping altogether. She turned her head to face him.

"Do you feel better now?" He had gently propped her chin up.

Mag kissed him. She still felt bad, but she had cried herself out. The kiss poured all her passion, all her love for Nathan. She kissed him as if there would truly be no tomorrow. She broke away and turned to put her forehead against him. "I love you, too. Very, very much. You are one of the three people I told you I was in love with. You always have been and you always will be. I'm sorry I caused such a scene -"

"Shilo told me you revisited memories of Marni. If I had your eyes and the ability to do that, I'd be hysterical as well. You lost your best friend and you're hurting. You don't need to apologize for your tears. I'll always be here for you when you need me." Again, he was ignoring the fact that she was involved with two outher people. It helped his illusion.

Mag kissed him again, just to feel him. At the moment she needed him, no one else. Just her and her Nathan. She closed her eyes and suddenly she was two decades younger, in the arms of her Nate in a beautiful darkness. She placed her hand on his cheek, taking the time to trace the familiar patterns of his skin. She saw him now, the way she had seen him while she was blind. Pulling back, she nuzzled into his chest. "Thank you for letting me back in, Nathan. If it weren't for you - I'd have nowhere to hide." Eyes still closed, she wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"Some part of me still had to have loved you deep inside for all these years. I hadn't known it, but now I'm really glad you worked your way back into my life." Having not needed eye contact in the past, he caressed her cheek gently, knowing she was listening. "Are you okay now?"

Mag took a deep breath. "If it's not talked about, I will be."

"I'm sorry, my Magdalene."

Mag gasped. It had been a very long time since she'd heard her real name. She kissed him again, needing to feel closer to him. There was years of lost time to be made up. She felt Nathan's hands drop to her waist.

Neither of them were completely clueless as to what they were doing, but they weren't entirely alert either. They knew they felt consumed by love; they felt their need to express it in ways no words could do. No thoughts of what possible consequences their actions could bring in the future entered their minds. They knew only of emotions and what they felt would properly express the love that they shared.

Nathan's back hit the bed softly, the kiss still going. It was passionate. It hadn't taken long for his pants to no longer be comfortable. Without breaking contact with his Magdalene, he removed the discomforting article of clothing.

Mag still had her eyes closed. She soon rolled to her back, bringing Nathan on top of her as she went. She kissed his neck softly. Her hands slid under his shirt, roaming around his chest. Logic and reason were out the window, all that mattered was what felt good where.

Another heated kiss and Marni's old dress was on the floor. The line between foreplay and intercourse had majorly blurred. Intercourse alone hadn't been the best part, but knowing who had brought the 'O' was.

The afterglow wasn't spent in a tired tangle of bodies, but very much like how they'd began. Sweet kisses filled with pure love. Gentle touches and caresses. Thee was no worry or regret, there was happiness and joy. They had been together, they _were_ together, and that was what mattered.

Sleep transitioned in at least an hour later, slipping in seamlessly along the cracks.

_ _

Pavi ran into Rotti's office. "Father!" He was move frantic than usual.

"What is it, boy?" Rotti felt only slight curiousity as he raised an eyebrow and clasped his hands together, resting them on his desk, watching his son.

"Amber never came home." He was out of breath.

"What?" His voice was eerily calm.

"Amber. After the Zydrate Support Meeting - she hasn't come home!"

"I'll send out a search for her," stated Rotti. His large hand moved to rest on the backside of the corded phone. "Thank you, son."

"Dad," His voice was tight, constricted as if he were going to cry. "They'd better find her." He was worried about his sister. As much as the Largos didn't show it, they were a family and they did care about each other.

"She will return, Pavi." He spoke through a hacking cough.

"Are you alright, Dad?" Concern was evident in his voice.

Unable to speak, Rotti nodded through his coughing fit and waved him off. When the man had gone and his coughing had died down, he reached for the phone to alert his workers of his daughter's disappearance.

_ _

Shilo paced the floor, biting her nails. She had heard them, she knew what they'd done. She wanted to see Graverobber; so many thoughts were whirling through her mind. What if Mag was still in danger? What would she do if anything happened to her? She wanted to confide in Graverobber, she trusted him. She wanted to talk to him alone, since Mag was preoccupied with her father anyway.

She was still dressed, she was awake, why not leave then? Mag would keep her father distracted enough so he wouldn't know she'd gone. That settled it, her decision was made. She shut off all the lights in the room and snuck out. She crept silently through the hall and down the stairs. The front door was mercifully silent as she opened it. She turned back, looking at the stairs as if she could see into her father's room, and continued on her way.

Outside it was eerily dark. The moon and the stars offered very little light, and everything seemed to be hidden in shadows.

Shilo inched away from the house, getting butterflies in her stomach due to nerves and longing. What would happen once she got to Graverobber? Would he be with a client, or would ha be awaiting her arrival? She wondered if confessing her thoughts would worry him.

Being outside when it was that dark was scary. It reminded her of the moments in old horror movies when you know something bad is about to happen. She tried shaking the thoughts away, which was hard since she couldn't recall the direction to go to Graverobber's alley when it was so dark. If only she had a flashlight with her.

Continuing forward, Shilo placed one hesitant foot in front of the other. She glanced behind her shoulder again, and the house was nowhere in sight. When she looked forward she suddenly felt disoriented. That was when she realized she had no idea where she was. Her heart pounded and hse felt the pressure of tears behind her eyes. Out of all things that could have happened, getting lost was the least expected.

She wanted her Dad. She wanted Mag and Graverobber. She just wanted to be somewhere familiar, with someone familiar so her sense of safety and security would return to her.

Looking every which way, Shilo felt utterly helpless. Hope was lost.

_ _

"It has been an hour since I sent the search party!" Rotti screamed into the phone, his face tomato red. "Why hasn't she been found?!"

"Calm down, Mr. Largo. Amber will be home safe and sound before the night is out, we promise."

"She'd better!" He was far from calm. "Or you'll have me to answer to!" His voice was menacing. He slammed the phone down and looked up to see Luigi standing before his desk. "What now?" he hissed. His hands pressed down on the desk as he leaned on them casually.

"Amber was talking about getting another fucking surgery before the fucking Zydrate Support meeting. She wanted to make it a fucking surprise for you but I fucking think that you should fucking know!"

Rotti's eyebrows raised high as he tried to count how many times the word 'fucking' had just been said. "And?"

"She was going to get fucking duplicates of Mag's fucking eyes because she was fucking jealous and wanted to fucking take over as the fucking Voice of fucking GeneCo."

"Can you say a sentence without using some form of the word 'fuck'?" He sat down in his big chair, Lugigi's cleaner words finally sinking in. "She was going to get duplicates of Mag's eyes?" He paled.

Luigi nodded.

Rotti felt like he was going to be sick. "I sent a Repo Man to repossess Mag's eyes earlier today." He seemed to be floating outside of his body as he said it, he didn't want what he was thinking to be true.

"Fuck!"

"And he brought them to me."

"Fuck!"

"And he'd been reluctant to do the job."

"Fuck!"

Rotti met his son's eyes. "I think. . .your sister is dead."

"FUCK!" Luigi kicked the desk.

_ _

Rotti called the leader of the search party. "Stop the search."

"Why, sir? Has she returned?"

"No. She's dead." He hung up, then dialed another number. "Are you ready for your first assignment?"

"You mean I get the job, sir?" An excited young male voice spoke through the other end.

"Yes, you get the job. Don't worry about appearances tonight. Take Nathan Wallace out! Kill him by any means necessary - he is a traitor to GeneCo." He hung the phone up then, and left it there. He looked to his son who had remained in the room. "Bring his daughter to me."

Luigi firmly nodded, accepting the order. Without further hesitation, he bounded out of his father's office.

Moments later when Rotti was hacking up a storm, a thought occured to him. If Amber had duplicates of Mag's eyes, and Amber was now dead, then Mag was still alive. He closed his eyes when an unbearable pain washed over him. When he sharply exhaled, the breath was his last, and his body crumpled to the floor.

_ _

She was grabbed in the dark. "Hey! Let me go!" She struggled against her capture. The next thing she knew, she was on the dirt floor. "Your fucking father killed my fucking sister!"

Shilo thought she saw a flash just before she was hit with a wave of pain. It wasn't the same kind of pain she felt when she missed her medicine, either. Nor was it the type of pain she felt with sadness. This pain was physical. She felt as if she'd been ripped open. The waves came again and again.

"Amber is dead! Amber is fucking dead!" The man sounded like he was in tears.

Shilo didn't know whether or not she was crying. She was in too much pain to make a sound. Even if she hadn't forgotten her holo-communicator in her bedroom, it would serve no use or help to her. She was speechless and suffering agonizing pain.

Luigi drove the knife into the girl again and again. The girl was hardly putting up a fight, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that his sister was dead and it was all her fault, or at least, it was all her father's fault. "You fucking killed my sister! My sister is fucking dead and it's all your FUCKING FAULT!" He was stabbing relentlessly, incessantly. He was not letting up in the slightest. He would not stop until she was dead.

Shilo uttered one word, squeaked one tiny word out with her dying breath, "Mom?" Then she was gone.

Hot tears streaked down Luigi's cheeks. Damn it, what would his father think? There was no doubt he was going to be angry with him. He'd asked him to bring the girl to him, not to kill her. He hadn't been able to help it, though, The burning hatred he felt had been greater than what he'd ever felt before.

Trembling, Luigi sheathed his bloody knife. He stood and walked away, procrastinating his return home.

_ _

Pavi entered Rotti's office a second time. Not immediately seeing his fahter, he looked around curiously. "Dad?" After a couple more seconds of scanning the room he saw him, crumpled up on the floor between his desk and his chair. "Dad!" He rushed to him and moved him so that he lay on his back. He touched his neck. It was chillingly cold as he searched for a pulse. The pulse didn't come. He tore his hand away with a choked gasp. "Dad."

He felt broken. Though he and his siblings had jokingly planned this day to come, he had been unaware of the extent of pain that he would feel. He certainly hadn't anticipated being the one to find his Dad's body after he'd died. His eyes welled up with tears. Where was Luigi? Better yet, where was Amber? They needed to know about this, then they needed to work out who would take GeneCo, the three of them, together. _Amber, _he thought. _Wherever you are, please, come home. I need you._

Then the first tear trickled, behind his stolen face. He squeezed his eyes shut, knowing no GENtern or amount of Zydrate would cure this pain. His father was dead, and there was nothing he could do to bring his back. With a voice soaked in sadness he whimpered, "I love you, Dad."


End file.
